Where Islam spreads, freedom dies

This one almost defies belief. It's an excerpt from an interview on the Today programme with Lars Gule, described as a Norwegian philosopher. In fact Lars Gule is a convicted terrorist. Here's his Wikipedia entry:

In 1977 Lars Gule was arrested in Beirut, Lebanon for carrying explosives, intended for an armed attack in Israel.[1] The explosives were meant for use in an action on behalf of Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) in an operation timed to coincide with the tenth anniversary of the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.[2] He was convicted to half a year in prison in Lebanon for illegal possession of a weapon (i.e. explosives), but was not convicted on terrorism charges.

More detail from this page:

In 1977 Lars Gule embarked on a mission to bomb a hotel where certain Israeli citizens were scheduled to meet. His mission was foiled by Lebanese Customs officials who caught Gule attempting to board a flight with 800 grams of explosives in his possession. Gule was convicted, sentenced to prison, and labeled “Norway’s first international terrorist. ”

When caught by Customs officials in Lebanon, Gule at first lied and claimed that he was not aware that he was carrying the explosives found hidden inside some books in his luggage. He claimed that he was given the books by some people he had met in Beirut. Only after his arrest did Gule confess to the truth.

Gule admitted to having spent 15 to 20 hours being trained by a terrorist organization on weaponry and sabotage tactics in preparation for this mission. The organization purportedly asked Gule to carry out the task as a “propaganda-action” to mark the 10-year anniversary of the 1967 war. They informed him that the target of the action was a hotel used as a conference center and meeting place by certain Israelis.

When interviewed afterwards, Gule said he was chosen for the operation because it was easier for an apparent European tourist to smuggle explosives across the border and confessed to being fully aware of the purpose of his mission. Gule added that it was up to him to see how well he could place the bomb, however the most important objective was to create an explosion. Gule stated that he did not regret participating in the planned terrorist act. He said that, while he once believed that it was possible to create a societal revolt without violence, he now believed that the use of weapons is needed in order to cure injustices because no one gives up his rights without a fight.

Although the crime Gule committed also violated Norwegian law, Norway chose not to prosecute Gule upon his return because he had already served out a sentence in Lebanon. Gule did not appear repentant or grateful. At the time he commented that he had very little respect for the Norwegian legal system and didn’t care what action they took so long as it didn’t result in his having to spend time in prison.

Lars Gule currently writes about terrorism. In an article headlined “What creates terrorists? Can terrorism be fought? ” Gule asserts that it is the motivation behind an act that decides if it should be labelled as terrorism.

This is not a surprising position for a convicted terrorist to take. Gule appears to have developed reasoning elastic enough to make his past crime more palatable to his followers.

Most amazing of all, though, the BBC interviewer disputes the existence of Muslim no-go areas and Lars Gule happily concurs that this is some kind of paranoid ultra-right conspiracy theory.

"This is standard beliefs (sic) among the xenophobes and islamophobes on the internet...This shows some of the warped sense of reality that is operating in this environment." Lars Gule

Here's a Daily Telegraph story in which Bishop Nazar-Ali warns of Muslim no-go areas in Britain.

Islamic extremists have created "no-go" areas across Britain where it is too dangerous for non-Muslims to enter, one of the Church of England's most senior bishops warns today.

The Rt Rev Michael Nazir-Ali, the Bishop of Rochester and the Church's only Asian bishop, says that people of a different race or faith face physical attack if they live or work in communities dominated by a strict Muslim ideology.

Others agreed with him.

...the Bishop's concerns are shared by other members of the General Synod.

The Rt Rev Nicholas Reade, the Bishop of Blackburn, which has a large Muslim community, said that it was increasingly difficult for Christians to share their faith in areas where there was a high proportion of immigrants of other faiths.

...Last night, Mr Davis said: "Bishop Nazir-Ali has drawn attention to a deeply serious problem. The Government's confused and counter-productive approach risks creating a number of closed societies instead of one open, cohesive one. It generates the risk of encouraging radicalisation and creating home-grown terrorism."

Are these people all paranoid, far-right xenophobes?

Daniel Pipes has more on Muslim no-go areas in France and around Europe here.